‘One person dies from heart disease every 10 seconds in China’

Heart ailments are affecting more younger people in China where one person dies from a cardiac disease every ten seconds, a new study reported today, calling for a strategy to improve the health of its citizens.

A report released by the China’s National Centre for Cardiovascular Diseases said that one in five Chinese are in “poor cardiovascular shape”, and one person dies from heart disease every ten seconds in China.

More and more young people are getting affected by heart aliments, the report said.

Statistics show that the number of Chinese aged between 35 and 44 with coronary heart diseases has increased 30 per cent over the last three years, and the death rate of the same age group has risen alarmingly by 111 per cent over the past 15 years, it said.

Cardiovascular disease is currently one of the leading causes of death in China, said Shi Xubo, cardiologist with Beijing Tongren Hospital.

China should adopt an intervention strategy to improve the health of its citizens, he was quoted as saying by the state-run Xinhua news agency.